SimulationX is a CAE software application running on Microsoft Windows for the physical

simulation A simulation is the imitation of the operation of a real-world process or system over time. Simulations require the use of models; the model represents the key characteristics or behaviors of the selected system or process, whereas the s ...

of technical systems. It is developed and sold by

ESI Group ESI Group provides virtual prototyping software that simulates a product's behavior during testing, manufacturing and real-life use. Engineers in a variety of industries use its software to evaluate the performance of proposed designs in the earl ...

History

In the mid 1980s, VEB Mikromat in

Dresden Dresden (, ; Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; wen, label= Upper Sorbian, Drježdźany) is the capital city of the German state of Saxony and its second most populous city, after Leipzig. It is the 12th most populous city of Germany, the fourth ...

(

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

) developed a program for

DOS DOS is shorthand for the MS-DOS and IBM PC DOS family of operating systems. DOS may also refer to: Computing * Data over signalling (DoS), multiplexing data onto a signalling channel * Denial-of-service attack (DoS), an attack on a communicat ...

to design controlled feed axis systems and to perform hydraulic calculations. In 1993, ITI GmbH, founded by former Mikromat employees in 1990, introduced a simulation tool for Microsoft Windows designed for

dynamic Dynamics (from Greek δυναμικός ''dynamikos'' "powerful", from δύναμις ''dynamis'' "power") or dynamic may refer to: Physics and engineering * Dynamics (mechanics) ** Aerodynamics, the study of the motion of air ** Analytical dyna ...

calculations of drive systems: ITI-SIM 1. With the release of ITI-SIM 2 in 1995, the software also allowed for fluid simulations. In 2002, the newly developed application SimulationX, based on the object-oriented description language

Modelica Modelica is an object-oriented, declarative, multi-domain modeling language for component-oriented modeling of complex systems, e.g., systems containing mechanical, electrical, electronic, hydraulic, thermal, control, electric power or process- ...

, was introduced to the market. By the year 2007, ITI-SIM (then in version 3.8) had been completely replaced by SimulationX. Since the beginning of 2016, ITI belongs to the ESI Group and now operates under the name ESI ITI GmbH.

Modeling and Functionality

Simulation models are created on the basis of a

discrete Discrete may refer to: *Discrete particle or quantum in physics, for example in quantum theory *Discrete device, an electronic component with just one circuit element, either passive or active, other than an integrated circuit *Discrete group, a g ...

network approach. That means the system is broken down into

logic Logic is the study of correct reasoning. It includes both formal and informal logic. Formal logic is the science of deductively valid inferences or of logical truths. It is a formal science investigating how conclusions follow from premise ...

al parts which are linked through specific connections. These sub-systems are represented by preconfigured or custom model elements organized in domain-specific and custom model libraries. The sub-models are then

parameter A parameter (), generally, is any characteristic that can help in defining or classifying a particular system (meaning an event, project, object, situation, etc.). That is, a parameter is an element of a system that is useful, or critical, when ...

ized and connected with each other. Models can be created either through the graphical user interface or by using Modelica command lines.

Libraries

SimulationX 3-9 Electric Vehicle Laptop center

Model

libraries A library is a collection of Document, materials, books or media that are accessible for use and not just for display purposes. A library provides physical (hard copies) or electronic media, digital access (soft copies) materials, and may be a ...

can be obtained as modular packages from the software producer. There are various libraries available with basic models for the corresponding physical domains as well as libraries with advanced models for specific applications and industries. Depending on the objective, the user can choose from 1D, 2D and 3D model elements with respect to the modeling, simulation and parameterization requirements. Modelica-based third-party and custom-built libraries can also be integrated into SimulationX. SimulationX libraries include: *''Signal blocks'': General Signal Blocks, Signal Sources, Linear Signal Blocks, Non-Linear Signal Blocks, Time-Discrete Signal Blocks, Special Signal Blocks, Switches *''

Mechanics Mechanics (from Ancient Greek: μηχανική, ''mēkhanikḗ'', "of machines") is the area of mathematics and physics concerned with the relationships between force, matter, and motion among physical objects. Forces applied to object ...

'': Mechanics 1D (rotary, linear), Planar Mechanics,

Multibody system Multibody system is the study of the dynamic behavior of interconnected rigid or flexible bodies, each of which may undergo large translational and rotational displacements. Introduction The systematic treatment of the dynamic behavior of inter ...

s, CAD Import via STL *''

Power Transmission Power transmission is the movement of energy from its place of generation to a location where it is applied to perform useful work. Power is defined formally as units of energy per unit time. In SI units: :\text = \frac = \frac Since the develo ...

'': Motors and Engines, Couplings and Clutches, Transmission Elements, Planetary Structures *'' Electrical Engineering and

Electronics The field of electronics is a branch of physics and electrical engineering that deals with the emission, behaviour and effects of electrons using electronic devices. Electronics uses active devices to control electron flow by amplification ...

'': Electronics (Analog), Magnetics, Electric Motors, Stepping Motors *''

Fluid Power Fluid power is the use of fluids under pressure to generate, control, and transmit power. Fluid power is subdivided into hydraulics using a liquid such as mineral oil or water, and pneumatics using a gas such as air or other gases. Compresse ...

and

Thermodynamics Thermodynamics is a branch of physics that deals with heat, work, and temperature, and their relation to energy, entropy, and the physical properties of matter and radiation. The behavior of these quantities is governed by the four laws of th ...

'': Hydraulics (pressure source, tank, volume, differential cylinder, throttle, valves, plunger cylinder, constant and variable), pneumatics (gases and mixtures), Thermal-Fluid (single phase with liquids and gases, two-phase with coolants, refrigerants, NIST, water, wet air, gas mixtures) *''

Torsional In the field of solid mechanics, torsion is the twisting of an object due to an applied torque. Torsion is expressed in either the pascal (Pa), an SI unit for newtons per square metre, or in pounds per square inch (psi) while torque is expressed ...

Vibration Analysis Vibration is a mechanical phenomenon whereby oscillations occur about an equilibrium point. The word comes from Latin ''vibrationem'' ("shaking, brandishing"). The oscillations may be periodic, such as the motion of a pendulum—or random, such ...

'': Inertia, Torques, Dampers, Couplings, Gears, Sensors *''Special:

Subsea Subsea technology involves fully submerged ocean equipment, operations, or applications, especially when some distance offshore, in deep ocean waters, or on the seabed. The term ''subsea'' is frequently used in connection with oceanography, marin ...

Library'': Subsea Hydraulics, Subsea Electrics, Offshore Handling

Modelica

SimulationX supports the

modeling language to simulate individually created, realistic (sub-)models. Models of the Modelica Standard Library or the ones purely based on the Modelica language definition can be executed.

Interfaces

SimulationX provides open, comprehensive CAx-interfaces to external programs for different purposes and applications, e.g. CAE (VehicleSim ( CarSim, BikeSim, TruckSim)),

CAD Computer-aided design (CAD) is the use of computers (or ) to aid in the creation, modification, analysis, or optimization of a design. This software is used to increase the productivity of the designer, improve the quality of design, improve co ...

(

Solid Edge Solid Edge is a 3D CAD, parametric feature and synchronous technology solid modeling software. It runs on Microsoft Windows and provides solid modeling, assembly modelling and 2D orthographic view functionality for mechanical designers. Throu ...

, Unigraphics / NX,

SolidWorks SolidWorks is a solid modeling computer-aided design (CAD) and computer-aided engineering (CAE) application published by Dassault Systèmes. According to the publisher, over two million engineers and designers at more than 165,000 companies w ...

, Creo Elements/Pro,

Autodesk Inventor Autodesk Inventor is a computer-aided design application for 3D mechanical design, simulation, visualization, and documentation developed by Autodesk. Features Inventor allows 2D and 3D data integration in a single environment, creating a virt ...

CATIA V5 CATIA (, an acronym of computer-aided three-dimensional interactive application) is a multi-platform software suite for computer-aided design (CAD), computer-aided manufacturing (CAM), computer-aided engineering (CAE), 3D modeling and Product lif ...

CAM Calmodulin (CaM) (an abbreviation for calcium-modulated protein) is a multifunctional intermediate calcium-binding messenger protein expressed in all eukaryotic cells. It is an intracellular target of the secondary messenger Ca2+, and the bin ...

, Computer-aided optimization (e.g. Isight, modeFRONTIER, Optimus,

optiSLang optiSLang is a software platform for CAE-based sensitivity analysis, multi-disciplinary optimization (MDO) and robustness evaluation. It is developed by Dynardo GmbH and provides a framework for numerical Robust Design Optimization (RDO) and s ...

OptiY OptiY is a design environment software that provides modern optimization strategies and state of the art probabilistic algorithms for uncertainty, reliability, robustness, sensitivity analysis, data-mining and meta-modeling. Features OptiY is ...

), FEA/FEM (

Abaqus Abaqus FEA (formerly ABAQUS) is a software suite for finite element analysis and computer-aided engineering, originally released in 1978. The name and logo of this software are based on the abacus calculation tool. The Abaqus product suite consis ...

, Ansys, COMSOL Multiphysics, MSC

Nastran NASTRAN is a finite element analysis (FEA) program that was originally developed for NASA in the late 1960s under United States government funding for the aerospace industry. The MacNeal-Schwendler Corporation (MSC) was one of the principal and o ...

), CFD. Co-Simulation provides a general interface which can be used to link SimulationX to CAE tools with predefined setups for particular realizations ( MSC.Adams, SIMPACK,

MATLAB MATLAB (an abbreviation of "MATrix LABoratory") is a proprietary multi-paradigm programming language and numeric computing environment developed by MathWorks. MATLAB allows matrix manipulations, plotting of functions and data, implementa ...

Simulink Simulink is a MATLAB-based graphical programming environment for modeling, simulating and analyzing multidomain dynamical systems. Its primary interface is a graphical block diagramming tool and a customizable set of block libraries. It offers t ...

, Fluent, Cadmould etc.). The coupling ensures the data exchange between the tools and the simulation software. Tools for a holistic structural and system analysis (equilibrium computation, natural frequencies, vibration modes, input-output analysis) and for linking a simulation model to the databases are available. A COM interface allows communication between SimulationX and other Windows applications for user-defined batch runs, embedded simulation, parameter studies, or optimizations. Code-Export features support the generation of C

source code In computing, source code, or simply code, is any collection of code, with or without comments, written using a human-readable programming language, usually as plain text. The source code of a program is specially designed to facilitate the w ...

for seamless model integration, Hardware-in-the-loop (HiL) applications and Rapid Control Prototyping, Functional Mock-up

Virtual Machine In computing, a virtual machine (VM) is the virtualization/ emulation of a computer system. Virtual machines are based on computer architectures and provide functionality of a physical computer. Their implementations may involve specialized h ...

. Throughout all stages of modern system design processes, engineers and scientists can work with a variety of seamlessly integrated tools. The connection of SimulationX to

real-time Real-time or real time describes various operations in computing or other processes that must guarantee response times within a specified time (deadline), usually a relatively short time. A real-time process is generally one that happens in defined ...

testing and simulation platforms such as

LabVIEW Laboratory Virtual Instrument Engineering Workbench (LabVIEW) is a system-design platform and development environment for a visual programming language from National Instruments. The graphical language is named "G"; not to be confused with G-c ...

, NI VeriStand,

dSPACE DSpace is an open source repository software package typically used for creating open access repositories for scholarly and/or published digital content. While DSpace shares some feature overlap with content management systems and document manag ...

, ETAS LABCAR, and SCALE-RT heavily increases the productivity in the design cycle and shortens time-to-market of new products. SimulationX supports the creation and import of Functional Mock-up Units defined by the Functional Mock-up Interface standard (development started by the MODELISAR project). Standardized interfaces facilitate the platform-independent exchange of simulation models and increase the flexibility in the connection of external simulation tools and models.

Industry usage

SimulationX is used for designing, modeling and analyzing the dynamic behavior of complex mechatronic systems as well as for virtual tests in many industries, research and education including the automotive sector,

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

and

shipbuilding Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and other floating vessels. It normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation that traces its roots to befo ...

heavy machinery Heavy equipment or heavy machinery refers to heavy-duty vehicles specially designed to execute construction tasks, most frequently involving earthwork operations or other large construction tasks. ''Heavy equipment'' usually comprises five e ...

and

mining Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the Earth, usually from an ore body, lode, vein, seam, reef, or placer deposit. The exploitation of these deposits for raw material is based on the economic ...

, power generation and

building technology Architectural engineers apply and theoretical knowledge to the engineering design of buildings and building systems. The goal is to engineer high performance buildings that are sustainable, economically viable and ensure the safety health. Archi ...

aerospace Aerospace is a term used to collectively refer to the atmosphere and outer space. Aerospace activity is very diverse, with a multitude of commercial, industrial and military applications. Aerospace engineering consists of aeronautics and astr ...

and defense,

mechanical engineering Mechanical engineering is the study of physical machines that may involve force and movement. It is an engineering branch that combines engineering physics and mathematics principles with materials science, to design, analyze, manufacture, an ...

, medical engineering, oil and gas, precision instruments and

home appliances A home appliance, also referred to as a domestic appliance, an electric appliance or a household appliance, is a machine which assists in household functions such as cooking, cleaning and food preservation. Appliances are divided into three ...

as well as

consumer electronics Consumer electronics or home electronics are electronic ( analog or digital) equipment intended for everyday use, typically in private homes. Consumer electronics include devices used for entertainment, communications and recreation. Usuall ...

Academic usage

SimulationX is widely used in education and research worldwide.Textbook Dynamics of Machinery
Dresig, Hans, Holzweißig, Franz, 2010, With CD-ROM.,

References

External links

*{{official website
Homepage of the society of automotive engineersSimulationX Global Subsea CenterHomepage of Functional DMU Fraunhofer GesellschaftFunctional Mock-up Interface
Simulation programming languages Simulation software Computer-aided engineering